State ed chief: Closure should still be considered for city’s struggling schools

King made clear Thursday that he believes the city’s most troubled schools should still face closure — even under a mayor and chancellor who fiercely criticized the previous administration for shutting down struggling schools.

During a visit to Bronx high school, King said he expects to receive “a detailed plan later this fall” for the city’s schools with the lowest test scores and graduation rates. Though July was the deadline for the city to turn in those required plans, the city asked for an extension to file turnaround plans for its 29 schools that need them.

King said the extension was appropriate for the city since Mayor Bill de Blasio and Chancellor Carmen Fariña have had to attend to many pressing matters, including negotiating new contracts with the city’s teachers and principals. Many of the interventions that have been proven to improve schools are embedded in the new teachers contract, he added, such as time for teacher training and collaboration and incentives for educators to act as mentors or to teach in challenging schools.

But he noted that other districts are still “opting to close schools when they feel like the culture has become so broken that they’re unable to make improvements.” He suggested that de Blasio and Fariña will also consider taking that step when schools show no signs of improving, even after they are given plenty of help.

De Blasio has said before that closure would be an option “if we feel, after applying all the tools we have in a reasonable timeframe, that we can’t fix the problem.” Since becoming schools chief, Fariña has rarely if ever said she would resort to shuttering a troubled school.

In a policy speech this month, she insisted: “We are no longer penalizing a school for its weaknesses.”

How the education world is reacting to racist violence in Charlottesville — and to Trump’s muted response

For educators across the country, this weekend’s eruption of racism and violence in Charlottesville, Virginia, offered yet another painful opportunity to communicate their values to families, colleagues, and community members.

Many decried the white supremacists who convened in the college town and clashed with protesters who had come to oppose their message. Some used social media to outline ideas about how to turn the distressing news into a teaching moment.

And others took issue with President Donald Trump’s statement criticizing violence “on many sides,” largely interpreted as an unwillingness to condemn white supremacists.

One leading education official, U.S. Education Secretary Betsy DeVos, followed Trump’s approach, criticizing what happened but not placing blame on anyone in particular:

I'm disgusted by the behavior and hate-filled rhetoric displayed near the University of Virginia in #Charlottesville (1/2)

The American Federation of Teachers, Weingarten’s union, is supporting vigils across the country Sunday night organized by chapters of Indivisible, a coalition that emerged to resist the Trump administration. The union also promoted resources from Share My Lesson, its lesson-plan site, that deal with civil rights and related issues.

“As educators, we will continue to fulfill our responsibility to make sure our students feel safe and protected and valued for who they are,” Weingarten said in a statement with other AFT officials.

Local education officials took stands as well, often emotionally. Here’s what the superintendent in Memphis, which is engaged in the same debate about whether Confederate memorials should continue to stand that drew white supremacists to Charlottesville, said on Twitter:

‘Underperformer,’ ‘bully,’ and a ‘mermaid with legs’: NYMag story slams Betsy DeVos

A new article detailing Betsy DeVos’s first six months as U.S. education secretary concludes that she’s “a mermaid with legs: clumsy, conspicuous, and unable to move forward.”

That’s just one of several brutal critiques of DeVos’s leadership and effectiveness in the New York Magazine story, by Lisa Miller, who has previously covered efforts to overhaul high schools, New York City’s pre-kindergarten push, and the apocalypse. Here are some highlights:

Bipartisan befuddlement: The story summarizes the left’s well known opposition to DeVos’s school choice agenda. But her political allies also say she’s making unnecessary mistakes: “Most mystifying to those invested in her success is why DeVos hasn’t found herself some better help.”

A friend’s defense: DeVos is “muzzled” by the Trump administration, said her friend and frequent defender Kevin Chavous, a school choice activist.

The department reacts: “More often than not press statements are being written by career staff,” a spokesperson told Miller, rejecting claims that politics are trumping policy concerns.

D.C. colleagues speak: “When you talk to her, it’s a blank stare,” said Charles Doolittle, who quit the Department of Education in June. A current education department employee says: “It’s not clear that the secretary is making decisions or really capable of understanding the elements of a good decision.”

Kids critique: The magazine commissioned six portraits of DeVos drawn by grade-schoolers.

Special Olympics flip-flop: DeVos started out saying she was proud to partner with the athletics competition for people with disabilities — and quickly turned to defending a budget that cuts the program’s funding.

In conclusion: DeVos is an “underperformer,” a “bully” and “ineffective,” Miller found based on her reporting.

Updated (July 31, 2017): A U.S. Education Department spokesperson responded to our request for comment, calling the New York Magazine story “nothing more than a hit piece.” Said Liz Hill: “The magazine clearly displayed its agenda by writing a story based on largely disputed claims and then leaving out of the article the many voices of those who are excited by the Secretary’s leadership and determination to improve education in America.”